Latest Paul Skenes Triple-A outing proves Pirates need to call up pitcher now

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Paul Skenes with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft expecting him to lead their starting rotation for a very long time. One advantage that came from selecting Skenes for the Pirates outside of his overwhelming talent was the fact that he was a college pitcher making him closer to MLB-ready.

Skenes flashed his insane potential this spring, but he didn't make much sense for the Pirates Opening Day roster given that he threw just 6.2 professional innings last season after getting drafted.

While he was never going to make the team out of camp, all he has done this season while pitching for Triple-A Indianapolis is that he's more than ready to make an impact at the MLB level. He showed this once again in his last time out.

Pirates should have no choice but to promote Paul Skenes after his latest dominant outing

Matched up against Alek Manoah and the Buffalo Bisons on Tuesday, the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, Skenes was absolutely dominant, twirling six scoreless innings. He allowed four hits and one walk while striking out seven. He threw 75 pitches as he continued to elevate his pitch count.

With his latest start in the books, the 21-year-old now has a 0.39 ERA in six starts and 23 innings of work, racking up 41 strikeouts compared to just six walks. He has allowed a total of one earned run in 23 innings of work at the highest level of the minor leagues. When a player is that dominant at any level, normally it'd warrant a promotion of some kind.

The one thing that seemed to be holding Skenes back was his lack of innings and build-up when it came to his pitch count, but six innings and 75 pitches are both new career highs for him. The Pirates have been getting strong starting pitching this season but Skenes' upside is unmatched. He has quickly proven that he has nothing else to prove in the minors and needs to be up with the big club. His latest outing only reinforced that.